State Ethics Panel Finds Fault in Bay County

Five current or former Bay County officials are in trouble with the Florida Ethics Commission for allegedly accepting a trip offered and paid for by the company that operates the Bay County Jail, the Corrections Corporations of America.

NewsChannel Seven has learned the ethics panel has found probable cause to believe Emergency Management C Bob Majka, former County Manager Jon Mantay and former County Attorney Nevin Zimmerman may have violated state gift laws by receiving expenses from CCA.

The gift was a trip four years ago to take a look at jails operated by CCA in Arizona and Tennessee. The ethics group says Zimmerman also failed to disclose the gifts from CCA.

The commission also found that Majka and former County Commissioners Danny Sparks and Richard Stewart wrongly accepted a round of golf worth $240 from an employee of a firm providing investment services for the county.

Former Bay County Commissioner Carol Atkinson was also on that CCA trip, but the panel cleared her.

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